News Articles

8th Annual Customer Appreciation Barbecue

Enjoy a relaxing day of sun, fun, friendship, great food and refreshments in the tranquil setting of Sherwood Park. Our Barbecue team will be cooking up a storm, compliments of Frontier Computing to continue the tradition of customer appreciation. We will blow out twenty-four candles on a delicious cake to mark our 24th anniversary serving Canadians coast to coast.

Sunday, September 19th 2010 from 12:00 - 4:00PM
Sherwood Park / Mt. Pleasant and Blythwood Rd.
(6 blocks North of Eglinton Ave. with volunteers posted along the route)

RAIN OR SHINE!!!

Please R.S.V.P. via telephone or e-mail before Friday September 10th 2010. Register early to assure your space and allow us to order enough food. Frontier Computing: 416-489-6690 Ext: 10, 1-888-480-0000 Ext: 10, reception@frontiercomputing.on.ca

FRONTIER VISION FAIR TO VISIT HALIFAX, OTTAWA AND KINGSTON

The Frontier Vision Fair is hitting the road again in September. First stop Halifax, then Ottawa and finally Kingston. This is a unique opportunity to see our extensive range of products in action in one place.

HALIFAX
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
4:00 PM to 8:00 PM
A.P.S.E.A.
Residence Building / Main Floor
5940 South Street, Halifax

OTTAWA
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
10:00 AM to 4:00 PM
Extended Stay Hotel
Wellington Room
141 Cooper Street, Ottawa

KINGSTON
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
10:00 AM to 4:00 PM
CNIB Kingston
Reception Area
826 Princess Street, Kingston

For more information, or to register for this exciting no charge event...
Web form: www.frontiercomputing.on.ca/register.htm
Call: 1-888-480-0000 X 31
Email: sricci@frontiercomputing.on.ca

New Podcast - Podcast 4 - A Healthy Dose of Technology

Listen or Go To Our Podcast Page for more info.

PEARL is shipping!!!

Bringing Portability to Scanning and Reading

The PEARL brings blind and low vision users instant portable access to printed material with an array of human-sounding voices. The folding camera deploys in seconds to connect to your PC and snap a picture of your reading material.

Lightning Fast OCR

The PEARL expands the features of OpenBook 9.0 to provide instant OCR. Press a keystroke to snap a picture, and hear your book read back to you with Eloquence or one of the human-sounding voices from RealSpeak Solo Direct. You control the reading rate and voice.

Read All Kinds of Documents

Use the PEARL to read books, newspapers, magazines, and bills. OpenBook identifies columns and places them in logical reading order. Change the language setting to read other languages with native speaker voices.

Use as a video magnifier

Use the PEARL to show a live video image on your PC. Magnify your document and navigate with the virtual XY table from the keyboard. The PEARL works in most room lighting. If the room is dark, simply turn on the built-in LED lighting. You can even write under the camera in a magnified view.

More PEARL features

• Scans 20 pages per minute while reading
• Write under the camera in magnified view
• Add comments and highlighting
• Export to other applications like Word or Notepad

Take it with You Anywhere

The PEARL sets up in seconds to provide a stable platform for the camera with alignment features to ensure you capture a good image every time. It runs off a single USB port - no battery or external power supply required. The PEARL folds into a compact 14x3x2 1/8 inch package and zips into its protective neoprene case - slip it into a bookbag or briefcase.

Until October 30, the PEARL camera is available at a significant discount for $689! Please call us for more details.
Requires OpenBook 9.

Frontier Computing renforce sa relation avec Freedom Scientific

23 avril 2010

Chers clients et amis,

Depuis 1986, Frontier Computing dessert les personnes à vision réduite ainsi que ceux souffrant de difficultés d'apprentissage, grâce à un vaste éventail de technologies d'assistance. Avec cinq membres de notre personnel qui sont eux-mêmes handicapés visuels, nous possédons la véritable expérience nous permettant de choisir les produits qui serviront le mieux les besoins des professionnels, des étudiants, des aidants, et tous ceux recherchant l'indépendance personnelle. En tant que propriétaire et PDG de Frontier Computing, je n'ai que de l'admiration pour la qualité de la recherche menant au développement de produits faisant une réelle différence dans la vie de Canadiens avec divers défis physiques ou intellectuels.

Un des chefs de file dans notre domaine est Freedom Scientific, le numéro un mondial pour les produits aidant les personnes à vision réduite ou frappées de cécité. Nous sommes fiers d'annoncer que Frontier est désormais le fournisseur préféré des produits Freedom Scientific pour les personnes à vision réduite ainsi que ceux souffrant de difficultés d'apprentissage.

Depuis plus de 16 ans, Frontier vend et soutient des produits Freedom Scientific, comme par exemple JAWS, OpenBook et MAGic. Évidemment que nous connaissons ces produits à fond. Nous sommes persuadés que ce partenariat particulier sera au bénéfice des clients recherchant une unique source pour leur intégration informatique. Ce qui plus est, Frontier peut maintenant offrir, et ce à travers le Canada, la gamme de produits d'agrandissement électronique et de Braille la plus large et la plus élaborée, avec le meilleur rapport qualité-prix possible. Vous pouvez faire confiance aux performances de ces produits, que ce soit au travail, en classe, ou à domicile.

Frontier Computing est honoré de représenter Freedom Scientific partout au Canada nous croyons que ce partenariat reflète une forte confiance en notre engagement à fournir à nos clients la plus haute qualité de service, ainsi que nos connaissances et un soutien après-vente fiable.

Notre compagnie est fondée sur le principe que les meilleurs résultats reposent sur une base réunissant les meilleurs produits et le meilleur service à la clientèle. Cette mission demeurera constante, et formera toutes nos initiatives dans l'avenir.

Ainsi, c'est avec enthousiasme que nous anticipons les resserrements de nos liens avec Freedom Scientific, et l'occasion de présenter ses produits à un marché canadien en pleine expansion.

Chris Chamberlin
Propriétaire

New Podcast - AEBC Commmunity Connect 2010

Listen or Go To Our Podcast Page for more info.

Frontier Computing strengthens its relationship with Freedom Scientific

Dear Customers and Friends:

Since 1986, Frontier Computing has served vision impaired and learning disabled Canadians with a broad range of assistive technologies. Having no less than 5 vision impaired people on staff, we possess the real-world experience to choose products that best serve the needs of professionals, students, teachers, care givers, and those seeking personal independence. As the owner and CEO of Frontier Computing, I have a great deal of admiration for the exhaustive research that goes in to developing products that make a real difference in the lives of disabled Canadians.

One such leader in our field is Freedom Scientific. Freedom Scientific is the world's premier manufacturer of low vision and blindness products. We are proud to announce Frontier's enhanced relationship as Canada's preferred provider of Freedom Scientific's full range of products for the vision impaired and learning disabled.

Frontier has sold and supported Freedom Scientific products such as JAWS, OpenBook and MAGic for over 16 years, so we know their products well. We feel this special relationship can only benefit our customers who are looking for a single-source solution for their computer integration needs.

Further, Frontier can now offer throughout Canada, the most competitive, feature-rich, cost-effective electronic magnification and Braille products in the industry. With the partnership between Frontier and Freedom Scientific, you can feel confident that these superior products will work on the job, in the classroom and at home.

Frontier Computing is honoured to be Freedom Scientific's representative across Canada we believe that this reflects a strong confidence in our commitment to providing our customers with the highest quality of service and reliable, knowledgeable post-sale support.

Our company was founded on the principle that the best outcome is achieved when the highest quality product is coupled with the highest quality customer support. This will always continue to be our mission and our purpose in all our future endeavours.

We look forward with excitement to our strengthened partnership with Freedom Scientific, and the opportunity that we have to introduce Freedom Scientific's products to an ever-increasing Canadian market.

Chris Chamberlin
CEO

New Podcast - Podcast 3 - Speech Recognition

Listen or Go To Our Podcast Page for more info.

Freedom Scientific Reduces Price of Focus 40 Blue Braille Display by 38% to Support Drive for Braille Literacy

Freedom Scientific Reduces Price of Focus 40 Blue Braille Display by 38% to Support Drive for Braille Literacy

(St. Petersburg, Florida - March 3, 2010) - Freedom Scientific® today announced that it has reduced the US list price of its Focus 40 Blue Braille Display from US$4,495 to US$2,795, a $1,700 reduction, in a move to support Braille literacy.

The National Federation of the Blind, in their report from the Jernigan Institute, has declared that there is a "Braille Literacy Crisis in America," citing such statistics as:

Fewer than 10 percent of the 1.3 million people who are legally blind in the United States are Braille readers
Only 10 percent of blind children in the US are learning Braille
Over 70 percent of blind adults are unemployed, and as many as 50 percent of blind high school students drop out of high school

The factors that contribute to a low Braille literacy rate in the US are many, among them a shortage of qualified Braille teachers and an increasing reliance on recorded audio and text-to-speech technologies.

"We believe that technology should be supporting Braille literacy, not replacing it," states Dr. Lee Hamilton, President and CEO of Freedom Scientific. "The combination of JAWS® and a Braille display makes learning and using Braille easy. JAWS can translate almost any electronic document or Web page into Braille and then display them on the Focus 40 Blue. JAWS also has a built-in Braille tutor that works with the Focus 40 Blue to provide immediate spoken help when the reader encounters an unfamiliar Braille symbol. This makes independent Braille study easier as it can be used with any document of interest to the student. With a computer and a Braille display, a person who is Braille literate can carry hundreds of books on a single memory card or USB thumb drive.

"Unfortunately, Braille displays have always been expensive, which has meant that not everyone who wanted a Braille display could get one. Freedom Scientific wants to open the world of Braille to as many blind people as possible. We first drastically reduced the cost of Braille displays in 2004, when we introduced models 40% below the average price of currently available Braille displays. We are pleased that the manufacturing efficiencies inherent in our latest product design make it possible for us to reduce prices once again and hope this will make Braille accessible to many more people."

The Focus 40 Blue is a compact portable Braille display that is the perfect companion to a desktop, laptop, or netbook PC. It connects via USB or Bluetooth® and has a Braille keyboard. The 40 Braille cells are constructed without seams between characters, so the user experience is like reading Braille on paper. The Focus 40 Blue works with Apple® computers and cell phones as well as with JAWS for Windows®.
Freedom Scientific's Braille displays are the most reliable in the industry and are backed by technical support and service teams based in St. Petersburg, Florida.

The new US/Canada list price for the Focus 40 Blue is USD 2,795 and includes a two-year manufacturer's warranty.

In Canada, please contact a Frontier Computing sales representative by dialing 1-888-480-0000 or email sales@frontiercomputing.on.ca.

Focus 40 Blue Product Page

New Podcast - Portable Book Players

Listen or Go To Our Podcast Page for more info.

Dolphin Guide and Guide Handfree version 5 (Canadian Edition only) Patch Released

Recently, a rather significant problem with Dolphin Guide's web browser was brought to our attention. This problem was due to an issue with a file contained on the Canadian version 5 build only. For this we apologize and thank you for your patience while we worked with Dolphin to resolve the issue.

This patch must be applied outside of Guide from the Windows Desktop. If you require assistance operating outside of Guide or are unfamiliar with some of the procedures listed below please contact technical support for assistance.

Download GuidePatch.zip (2.26 MB)

STEPS TO APPLY THE PATCH:

1. Extract GuidePatch.zip to a folder or to your Desktop.
2. Run the extracted file called Guide-EN-CA-PATCH-WB25.exe
3. When prompted press the Setup button followed by the Install button.

If the installation fails this may be due to a lack of permissions or Windows Vista/7 security reasons. Simply locating and replacing the file called GuideWB.exe will achieve the same results.

Trainers Wanted in South-Western Ontario

Frontier Computing, the leading provider of assistive technology in Canada is seeking LD and Vision instructors in South-Western Ontario (London area and beyond.) Hourly rates start at $50 plus travel allowance.

Please note that this is not a full time position but rather contract training on an as needed basis.

We look forward to speaking with you. Call Stephen Ricci at 1-888-480-0000 ext. 31 or email sricci@frontiercomputing.on.ca.

Qualification in the proficient use of one or more of the following products is essential:

Learning Disabilities:

• Kurzweil 3000
• Dragon NaturallySpeaking
• TextHelp
• WordQ/SpeakQ
• Inspiration/Kidspiration
• Intellitools
• Dana/Neo (AlphaSmart line)
• Any other LD software

Low Vision and Blindness:

• JAWS screen reading software
• Window-Eyes screen reading software
• ZoomText screen magnification software
• Kurzweil 1000 OCR software
• Open Book OCR software
• Hardware notetakers such as the PAC Mate and Braille Note mPower
• Hardware such as embossers and refreshable Braille displays
• SARA (Scanning and Reading Appliance)
• DAISY players and recorders
• CCTVs
• Any other assistive software or hardware for the vision impaired